OPPO F3 Specifications

From being just another Chinese smartphone maker, Oppo has emerged as one of the biggest Smartphone sellers in the country, thanks to its intense marketing campaigns and an impressive line-up of selfie centric devices.

Launched in May 2017, the Oppo F3 is the younger and compact sibling of the premier Oppo F3 Plus. The F3 falls into the mid-range market and comes with several remarkable features, the number one being a dual camera setup for group and solo selfies.

Let’s take a closer look at the features and product highlights that separates the Oppo F3 from other devices in the ultra-competitive mid-range market.

Design and Build Quality

• The Back: The Oppo F3 flaunts a metal uni-body design that lends a premium finish to the device. The rear panel has a 13MP camera at the top right along with a flash, and the Oppo logo is at the centre, followed by the regulatory information on the bottom. The antenna lines at the top and bottom give a shiny, metallic finish to the device.

• The Front: The front of the device is an all-glass affair and sports a large 5.5” screen. The side bezels are thin, while the top and bottom bezels are quite thick. The fingerprint sensor (which also doubles up as the home button) is on the front, right below the display.

• Placement of Buttons and Speakers: The volume rocker is on the left, while the power button and sim tray are on the right. The mono speaker grill is on the bottom of the device, along with the 3.5mm jack and micro USB port.

Overall, the device is quite lightweight and is comfortable to hold and use, even for extended periods. The ergonomic design fits right in your hand and adds to the overall UX.

Display and Battery LifeThe F3 comes with a 5.5” Full-HD IPS LCD, which has good viewing angles and sufficient brightness. The 1080p Full-HD display strikes the right balance between usability and battery life, and the display is quite sharp and ideal for daily usage.

Some of the other features of the display include the Eye Protection mode – This mode lets you turn off the blue light, thereby helping you alleviate the strain to your eyes when using the device at night. Additionally, you can turn on the adaptive brightness mode which alters the screen display according to the surrounding light.

The F3 sports a 3200 mAh non-removable battery with the VOOC flash-charge technology. The device easily lasts for an entire workday on a single charge. If you’re a heavy user, then you may have to charge it in the evening, but the charging time is quick, thanks to the flash-charge.

Hardware and Performance

• The Processor: An octa-core MediaTek processor powers the F3. The processor clocks at a speed of 1.5GHz and the Mali T860MP2 is the GPU. • Storage: The RAM capacity is 4GB, and the F3 has an internal storage space of 64GB, which can be expanded up to 256GB, via a microSD card.• Performance: When it comes to RAM management, the F3 handles daily tasks like web browsing, social media, texting and switching between apps seamlessly and efficiently. The device runs casual games like Temple Run and Subway Surfers without any noticeable delays or lags.

However, the CPU tends to suffer a bit, when running memory intensive games like Call of Duty or Modern Combat. If you aren’t a hardcore gamer, then this shouldn’t be an issue.

Software, UI, and AppsAndroid 6.0.1 Marshmallow powers the F3 and Oppo’s Color OS is the custom UI skin on top of it. The Color OS is quite functional and offers a snappy and seamless experience. The UI also support several intuitive gestures like double tapping to unlock the screen and drawing the letter “O” to open the camera app and so on.

The notification slider has two halves. The top portion displays your current notifications, while the lower half shows the quick toggle buttons for data, Wi-Fi and so on.

The Color OS doesn’t have many third-party apps pre-installed, thereby reducing the volume of bloatware. It’s a single layer UI, meaning there are no app drawers and all your apps are installed directly on the home screens.

Camera PerformanceThe biggest highlight of the Oppo F3 is the dual camera setup on the front. It features a 16MP primary sensor (aperture f/2.0) and an 8MP secondary sensor (aperture f/2.4). The selfie camera is quite impressive and helps you click picture-perfect selfies, which win you a ton of likes on Facebook and Instagram.

Well-exposed shots, sharp images, and excellent low-light performance are some of the pros of the selfie camera. Additionally, switching between the wide-angle lens and portrait mode is simple, with just a single click. This makes it easy to change between solo and group selfies.

Coming to the rear camera, you get a 13MP sensor with an aperture rating of f/2.2. Images taken in well-lit conditions have accurate colour reproduction and sufficient contrasts. On the other hand, the photos have a watercolour like effect when shot in low-light.

Pros – The Good

• The thin and light body makes it a pleasure to hold and operate, even while on the move.• The Palm shutter feature lets you just wave your hand in front of the camera to activate an automatic countdown timer.• Other camera features like Bokeh Effect, Anti-shake effect, Beautify and Expert mode help you click DSLR-like images.• Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protects the display, thereby your screen is free of scratches and other everyday wear and tear.• It has a triple slot tray, meaning you can use two sim cards and a microSD card at the same time.

Cons – The Bad

• It still runs on Android Marshmallow and not the latest Android Nougat.• The device uses micro USB and not the newer USB Type-C. • The battery is non-removable.• It does not support FM without internet connectivity.• The mid-level CPU struggles a bit when pushing the boundaries.